Haunting Night's
by WybiE'z KidNapPer
Summary: Exploring through the streets was something Sally had always wanted to do, but when hearing a cry for help, she realizes she's in for more then she though she was. *Request for a friend*


**Request from a friend - blueflower1594 :D**

**I promised this to her ages ago so I thought it was about time I got on with it :P**

**Hope you enjoy**

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><p>A haunting cry and a wave of screams was all was needed for the thrill of victory. Candle lights flickered from within the carved pumpkin faces as they watching menacingly from the ground on which they rested. The bright yellow moon shined high and intimidating among the sky.<p>

A skinny silhouette passed the many lights in a quick motion before melting within the shadows. A crooked proud smile rested upon the stranger's face as he strolled along the dark alleyway.

Two boys, in their late teens, stood on opposite sides of the alleyway. They raised their heads and looked at each other with a look they both understood. They moved away from the walls and walked together side by side. Hoods rested over their heads while their hands hid inside their pockets. They walked closer until the tall stranger stopped and actually acknowledged them being there.

"Give us your wallet freak" one of the hooded teens said as he withdrew a carving knife from his pocket and held it out so it reflected in the moon light.

The tall stranger stared for just a moment, before he used his index fingers to stretch out the corners of his mouth, his teeth sharpened into throat cutting razors and a paralyzing shrill escaped from his thick white skull.

As his face came into the flicking street light, the hooded boys tripped over each other clumsily as their own screams surrounded their alleyway. The first hooded boy dropped his knife to the ground as his friend grabbed his hoodie and dragged him away.

When the two lads were gone, the tall skeleton was left to gloat. "Just what I needed to end this perfect night" he said.

Jack Skellington smiled before carrying on his walk down the alleyway. "I do love these annual visits" he said to himself. "After the whole Christmas incident it's nice to get back to my roots. A good old scare fest on Halloween in just what I needed" Jack thought, thinking of the past year. It wasn't the proudest of moments for him, like he had hopped, but it had given him some fresh new ideas for Halloween.

Jack smiled contently and walked out of the alleyway. The streets, at one point alive with people, were now bare and lifeless. Everyone had gone. The only people that were there were the laughing and cheerful crowed of monsters and ghouls. They all applauded and boasted about their greatest scare that night. Despite their happiness, they silenced when hearing the light, sneaking footsteps of their leader.

"Jack!" they cried simultaneously as the tall skeleton walked among his people. "Hello everyone, I'd be pleased to hear you all had a horrible night?" Jack asked with a glee in his music filled voice. The crowd cheered. "The worst of the century" the mayor of Halloween replied, his faced turned to show his delight. "We haven't had this much fun in ages" he added while turning to the crowed, as if cueing them to show their delight also.

Jack smiled, "splendid, simply splendid" he sighed. He looked around the crowd and frowned. "Where's Sally?" he asked. He placed his boney finger to his lip and pondered. The mayor's face turned around to show his worried fear. "I don't know. She went off the same time we all did but I haven't seen her since" the mayor jittered.

Jack gazed among the crowd and streets once more before sighing. "I wonder where she could be. Mayor, take everyone back to Halloween Town, I'll stay here and look for her" he said before setting off in a light jog. "Won't you need help?" the mayor called after. "No" Jack shouted back before disappearing into the night.

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><p>Everything was definitely new to her. The streets, the towns, the screaming people, it was just like how Jack described it to her. She had never been on a scream hunt before, the doctor had never let her, this was her first times and she loved it. People running and screaming, children hiding under their pillows, parents locking the doors and windows, it was amazing.<p>

She walked quietly among the back streets where no one had bothered to go. They told her it was pointless going there. It was all in ruin so no people would be there. Naturally she was curious, so she searched. But they were right. Every building had wooden planks on the windows while rubble was piling up on the floor. No one was around, or if they were they would have left after seeing her. Apart from it being empty, the streets looked a lot like the streets back home in Halloween Town. But she still wondered.

As Sally walked along the road, she took notice of one particular building. It was old and the roof was covered with holes. The front door was hanging on a single hinge while a rusted sign hanged loosely from an unused light. The sign read 'HOSTEL' in large white letters against a green background.

Sally tensed and stared at the building. She struggled to keep herself still and silent and listened intensely. She heard a strange noise, she didn't recognize it at first but the more she listened, the more she understood it. It was the sound of a cat crying frantically… and the sounds of a child in pain.

Sally ran to the Hostel building and rushed into the building, the door fell to the floor as she did so. When inside, Sally found herself in a moment of forgetting, she stopped to look around. Bricks and rubble rested messily on the ground in masses of piles. Dust flew around aimlessly through the air and tables were made up of cracked wood while pots and pans lay to the ground with dents.

Through the walls, a sharp wailing echoed through the room and Sally remembered her reason being there. "Hello" she called out. She walking around the room, her shoes clanked against the floor with her steps.

"Help"

Sally stopped and stared at a chipped door in the corner of the room. "Whose there?" she called, placing her hands over her mouth to make herself louder. A pain filled groan was her reply. "Please help me" the voice cried out, fallowed was another cry from a cat. Sally didn't think twice before stepping over the rubble and opening the door.

When she looked inside, she saw that the whole roof had collapsed and fallen to the floor. On top of the rubble a black cat sat with his fur standing up against his back and a distressed look in his icy blue eyes. Next to the cat, a young boy lay among the pile of rubble, his body covered in soot and ash, and a fresh trickle of blood running down his head.

"Oh my goodness" Sally gasped as she saw the child before her. The boy looked up but didn't seem to notice her, just her voice. Sally quickly rushed to his side and knelled to him. The cat watched as the rag doll pushed off the small amounts of rubble that covered the boy. "Don't worry, I'll help you, just stay calm" she said.

The boy's vision blurred as he stared up at her, he focused himself to look at her until she became clear. "Whoa!" he cried in a sudden shrill while jolting away from her, only to be responded with pain shooting through his body. He groaned again while remaining still, biting down on his lip to somehow make the pain bearable. Sally shook her head, not sure how to handle the situation. Usually when she saw the people of Halloween Town in pain they were laughing and being cheerful. She knew though that it was different for normal people, but she had never seen it before.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you, I just want to help" she said, seeing the boy stare at her fearfully and try to back away just as much as he could. The boy didn't look convinced, "w-wh… why… y-you're a rag doll. Like… a real living rag doll" was all he said. His voice was ruff and cracked, most likely due to the musty air. Sally tried to make herself look as friendly as possible even though knowing it would be hard. "Are you hurt?" she asked, holding out her hand to show there was no danger. When the boy didn't respond, just stared at her, Sally shook her head and tried again. "Can you sit up?" she asked, retracting her hand.

The boy looked down at himself for a moment before trying. He used his elbows to lift himself up, though his bones felt sore and bruised from resting of the masses of bricks. He almost fell back to the rubble before Sally shot her arms out and grabbed him, helping him to sit up properly. His bones creaked as he hunched over and winced.

He breathed deeply, his lungs throbbing with pain from the sudden movement. He slowly looked up to the blue stitched up rag doll that held out her arms in case he was to fall again. He breathed slowly once, "… thank you" he muttered quietly. Sally smiled.

The black cat paced among the fallen bricks and sat upon the boy's long rugged jeans, making the latter smile. He reached out his arm and petted the cats head.

Sally frowned as she looked at the blood that ran freely down the boy's face. She held his face, making him jump from her. "W-what are you doing?" he asked in a frightened manner. Sally moved her hands reassuringly. "I'm helping you, you're bleeding. Just hold still, and let me look" she said calming. The boy looked slightly away from her as she held his head in her hands and inspected the wound. "My name is Sally. What's your name?" she asked, wanting to break the ice between them. She knew that Jack was good at making friends and gaining people's trust, so she asked herself, what would he do?

The boy was slow to answer. "Wybie…" he said in an almost confessing tone. Sally smiled, "Well it's nice to meet you… um, what's your cat called?" she asked, looking down at the feline. Wybie looked down at the cat who curled up against his now ripped hoodie, he paused again before answering. "He's not my cat… and… that's what I call him. Cat" he said, the awkward feeling was showing in his voice and Sally noticed.

Sally released his head and he turned to face her. "Interesting… I um, I think you're going to need stitches. I could do that for you if you want?" she asked. "What?" Wybie asked, his eyes looked at her in a defenseless way. "The wound on your head, it's very serious. I can help you if you want" she said, wanting to keep the situation calm. Wybie raised his hand to his head, he yelped as his hand felt the sharp wound on the very edge of his hair line. Sally placed her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it in a minor act of desperation. "Please, just let me help" she almost begged. She didn't want to see the boy suffering, especially when she knew that she could help if he gave her the chance.

Eventually, and to her relief, Wybie nodded his head, "…okay" he said breathlessly. His head throbbed with sharp white pain, making his mind dazed and blurry. Sally reached to the back of her ear and pulled out a sharp needle. She then reached up to her long red hair and pulled from her head two single strands. She held them together and weaved them through the small pin hole on the top of the needle. She held the boy's head and pushed back his hair.

Wybie, knowing what he had just agreed too, gritted his teeth and shut his eyes. He awaited the feel of the needle.

When it came, he didn't scream, instead he choked on his pain. His chest rose up and down as he breathed distressingly, but he didn't resist. Sally smiled gently; she tried to go as slow and as carefully as possible, not wanting to put him through more pain then necessary. "Don't worry, soon it won't feel as bad" she assured. A silence passed between them and Sally wanted to change that. "What were you doing here? Do you live here?" she asked. Wybie breathed deeply before answering, "No… no one lives here… that's why I'm… well never mind."

"Are you hiding?" Sally asked knowingly. Wybie sighed, "… yes. It was just for tonight though, I was going to leave in the morning but… well then the roof collapsed on my head" he confessed. His stroke on the cat's back hardened with every pierce the needle made into his skin.

"Why were you running away?" Sally asked softly. Wybie looked down at the cat as he looked right back up at him. He bit down on his lip hesitantly. "It's a long story, I guess" he said.

Sally smiled, "We have time" she said, forgetting about the tall skeleton who was on the look for her.


End file.
